Means for guiding an object along a runway



y 4 J. RIBETON 3,131,799

MEANS FOR GUIDING AN OBJECT ALONG A RUNWAY Filed July 3, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 lltlh lllll N WM INV ENT OR leam Ribefiam ATTORNEY y 5, 1964 J. RIBETON 3,131,799

MEANS FOR GUIDING AN OBJECT ALONG A RUNWAY Filed July 3, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Y p 3/ (5/ J2 25 25 iii INVENT OR Jearz/ Rbevm ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,131,799 MEmlS FOR GUIDlN-G AN OBJECT ALGNG A RUNNAY This nvention relates to conveyor or runway systems, of the type used in conveying objects over a predetermined path and which systems may include, for example, a set of horizontal, longitudinally spaced rolls extending transversely to the direction of the path to be followed. The invention is more particularly directed to improved means for guiding the objects along a centered course on such a runway, i.e. preventing them from straying towards either side.

The provision of such guiding or centering means is especially necessary in the case of heavy objects, e.g. metal ingots, slabs or blooms, which once displaced from the center of the runway for some reason (cg. a curve in the path) will not readily and of their own accord return to the centered position but will continue to scrape along a side of the conveyor with objectionable results. Guiding means have accordingly been proposed, which comprise flap elements spaced along the sides of the runway and continually reciprocated with a flapping movement so long as objects are being conveyed over the runway, so as to engage and restore any object that may stray oft-course back to the middle of the runway. A system of this kind while performing its object successfully enough is obviously inconvenient s nce its elements are reciprocated at all times whether or not the objects are straying, and thus result in superfluous consumption of energy as well as continual wear of the parts.

It is an object of this invention to provide improved guiding or centering means of the character described which in contrast with such earlier arrangements will operate only when required to do so, and will then positively and effectively return a straying object to its prescribed central course.

The invention provides, in combination with means defining a runway for displacement of objects over a prescribed path, the objects being apt to stray from a centered course on the runway, guiding or centering means comprising a plurality of deflectable elements spaced along at least one side of the runway and engageable by a corresponding side of an object straying ofi-course so as to be deflected thereby outwardly of the runway, and power means, e.g. fluid actuators, connected with each element and responsive to a predetermined outward deilection thereof to apply inward pressure to the element thereby to restore the object to its course.

Thus, with the conveyor of the invention, each deflectable element of the guiding means is only operated in response to engagement of it by an object, as required to restore the object on to its normal path.

Exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described for purposes of illustration but not of limitation with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a simplified overhead plan view of a roller conveyor equipped with the improved guiding means according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a transverse elevational view on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

1G. 3 is similar to FIG. 1 but illustrates a curved section of conveyor and associated guiding means;

FIG. 4 is an overhead view, on a somewhat enlarged scale, illustrating a singie deflectable element and asso- "ice ciat-ed power actuator and restoring means in accordance with a modification of the invention;

FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 are views partly in section illustrating a deflectable element and the associated hydraulic control cylinder in successive operating positions.

There is illustrated in FIG. 1 a conveyor comprising a series of spaced rolls 1 extending transversely to the direction of the conveyor path and adapted for the support of objects 2 such as metal ingots, slabs or blooms, or the like. Mounted adjacent the ends of each roll 1 and slightly above the surface of it, as shown in FIG. 2, are pairs of flap members 3 pivoted about vertical axes 4. The flaps 3 are normally positioned at an inward angle to the direction of movement of the slabs 2 along the conveyor, as indicated by the arrow, this normal angled position of the flaps 3 being clearly shown in FIG. 1.

The flaps 3 are each connected by rods pivoted to their outer sides, with pistons reciprocable in respective hydraulic cylinders 5 all supplied from a source of pressure fluid not shown. The action of the hydraulic cylinders 5 is such that whenever a flap is displaced outwardly from its normal or idle angled position, to an actuated position as shown for the second right-hand flap from bottom in FIG. 1, the actuator 5 is triggered to apply a fluid pressure pulse to the piston therein which forcibly returns the piston and hence the flap to its normal or idle position.

The triggering means or actuator 5, and the action thereof is shown in FIGS. 5 to 7. Referring to FIG. 5, the parts are shown in normal inoperative position. The actuator 5 comprises a cylindrical housing having its interior divided by a partition 12 into an open ended piston compartment 46, and a discharge compartment 44, having a fluid discharge line 19.

Slidable in the compartment 46 is a piston 9, which closes the open end thereof. Secured to the outer end of the piston is a connecting rod 49 having a pin 41 on its outer end receivable in a slot 42 provided in the flap 3. Obviously upon the pivoting of flap 3 the piston 9 will be reciprocated. The actuator 5 has a fluid inlet 16, connected to any source of hydraulic fluid, the inlet terminating at a circumferential groove 58 in the wall of compartment 46. The groove 58 is of sufficient width to assure that a radial fluid passage 31 in piston 9 will always be in register therewith. The passage 31 also terminates at a circumferential groove 60 in the wall of an axial bore centrally of piston 9, and a passage 35 leads from the forward end of the bore radially and then rearwardly to the inner end of the piston 9.

Slidably mounted within the piston axial bore is a valve member 25 having a radial fluid inlet passage 33 approximately centrally thereof and connecting to a forwardly extending axial passage 34.

The valve member 25 is normally urged inwardly by a spring 61 which forces the valve rearwardly against the inner end of a stop 26 which extends forwardly from the rear wall of the compartment 44, and into the compartment 46 through an opening in partition 12. Also slidably mounted in the opening in partition 12 is a sleeve valve 16 of suflicient inside diameter to define a fluid passage 52 around stop 26, from compartment 46 to compartment 44-.

The piston facing head 50 of valve 10 is of enlarged diameter and is recessed to receive the adjacent end of piston valve 25 (FIG. 7) and the circumferential rim thereof is adapted to seat on the inner face of piston 9 (FIG. 6). The rear face of the head 50 is provided with a centrally positioned circumferential ridge to seat against the piston facing wall of partition 12, when the 6 valve is in one position (FIG. The end of the sleeve valve within compartment 44.- has a radial flange 55 which seats against the partition 12 when the parts are positioned as in FIG. 7.

It will be seen that when the parts are positioned as in FIG. 5, the piston valve fluid inlet 33 is out of register with groove 60 and fluid will not flow. Upon flap 3 being engaged by an article on the conveyor, the piston 9 will be moved inwardly (see FIG. 6) to bring the fluid inlets into register, compress spring 61 and cause the inner end of the piston 9 to seat on the forward end of sleeve valve closing off compartment 44 and resulting in a pressure build-up behind piston 9.

Upon flap 3 being released the pressure will force the piston 9 and the valve 19 outwardly, and the latter will also force valve 25 outwardly until sleeve valve 10 is restrained by the radial flange 55 engaging the partition wall to stop outward movement of the sleeve valve (see FIG. 7). Piston 9 will then move out of engagement with valve 10 opening the piston actuator compartment 45 to discharge, resulting in a pressure drop whereupon spring 61 will expand and the parts will return to the position shown in FIG. 5. ever that the present invention is not limited to said construction since various other means may be devised for procuring the desired trigger action whereby the flaps 3, on being deflectedfrom their normal idle positions by a predetermined amount, release a force which positively restores them to said normal position. While such force,

' in the illustrated example, is a hydraulic pressure force derived from a particular type of hydraulic actuator, equivalent arrangements may readily be designed wherein the restoring force released or triggered on deflection of the flaps may be a force of some other character, e.g. pneumatic, electrical, or mechanical, e.g. the force of a spring provided with suitable tensioning means therefor and releasable on deflection of the flap from its normal position.

In the operation of the conveyor, the articles such as metal slabs2 are arranged to be fed serially over the conveyor rollers 1 from top to bottom in FIG. 1, by any suitable means, e.g. gravity or otherwise. Whenever a slab 2 departs from its normal position on the conveyor it eventually engages a flap 3 and deflects it from its idle position whereupon the associated actuator 5 responds by developing a force which restores the deflected flap to its normal position, thereby restoring the straying slab to its normal path on the conveyor. It will be noted that with this arrangement the slabsor other articles will tend tobe maintained not only on their proper path midway of the rollers but will also tend to be kept in their proper normal orientation thereon (as shown for. the upper slab 2 in FIG. 1) since, as will be evident. from thedrawing, a leading edge of the slabs will be urged in one direction by the flaps on one side of the'conveyor, while the trailing edges of the slab will be' urged in. the other direction by the flaps on the other 7 side.

. EIGI 3 illustrates a similar arrangement as applied to a curved conveyor section. It is noted that in such an instance it may be sufiicient to provide theflaps 3 only at the outer side of the bend. Similarly, the invention contemplates a conveyor provided with the improved guiding means including the flaps 3 on only oneside of the conveyor path, and providing means whereby the articles are constantly urged or .biassed towards that side. Such a bias'sing action may beprovided'by mounting the rollers at a slant orinclined towards said one side of the conveyor, or providing the rollers with a taper towards said one side.

It will be understood how- In the modification illustrated in FIG. 4, the flaps 3 are each provided with auxiliary restoring means, such as springs 7, which tend to hold the flaps in engagement with a yielding abutment 8. The full-line position of the flap 3 shown in FIG. 4 is the end position reached by the flap in response to a force pulse delivered by actuator 5, Le. just after the flap has restored a straying object 2 to its normal position on the conveyor. Promptly thereafter the spring 7 acts to pull back the flap to the intermediate position shown at 3b, in engagement with the yielding abutment 8. Position 3b is the normal or idle position of the flap. When an object 2 deflects the flap from this position 322 to the position 3a, the actuator 5 is triggered to develop a force displacing the flap to the position 3. This arrangement is advantageous in that it reduces the frequency with which the flaps have to act in order to keep the objects on their centered path. A light fluid actuator may be substituted for the spring 7.

Various other changes and modifications, in addition to those specifically mentioned, may be conceived; thus it will be obvious that the guiding means may be used with conveyors of various types other than roll type conveyors.

What I claim is: V

1. In a conveyor for conveying objects over a prescribed path, a plurality of deflectable guiding elements spaced along at least one side of said path and engageable by an object moving laterally from its normal path on the conveyor so as to be deflected by said object in a direction outwards relative to said prescribed path, and power means connected to each element and responsive to a predetermined degree of outward deflection thereof so as to impart an inward force to the element whereby the element restores the object back on to its normal path.

2.- A conveyor according to claim 1, in which said elements are pivoted for rotation inward and outward of the conveyor path. V

3. A conveyor according to claim 1, wherein said power means comprise a cylinder, a piston slidable therein and connected with a defiectable element, the piston being displaceable in the cylinder from a first to a second position on outward deflection of the element, and means triggered by movement of the piston to said second position to apply fluid pressure to the piston to restore it to said first position.

4. A conveyor according to claim 3, in which said,

means triggered by the movement of the piston to said second position applies fluid pressure to the piston to direction of travel of the conveyor slightly above the carrying surface of the conveyor, means normally positioning said arm with the nonpivoted end positioned over the surface of the conveyor, and means responsive to a pivoting of the arm away from the conveyor to reverse the arm and pivot it over the conveyor.

7 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES'PATENTS Hess ler et al Oct. 11, 1955 Nicholson June 19, 1956 

1. IN A CONVEYOR FOR CONVEYING OBJECTS OVER A PRESCRIBED PATH, A PLURALITY OF DEFLECTABLE GUIDING ELEMENTS SPACED ALONG AT LEAST ONE SIDE OF SAID PATH AND ENGAGEABLE BY AN OBJECT MOVING LATERALLY FROM ITS NORMAL PATH ON THE CONVEYOR SO AS TO BE DEFLECTED BY SAID OBJECT IN A DIRECTION OUTWARDS RELATIVE TO SAID PRESCRIBED PATH, AND POWER MEANS CONNECTED TO EACH ELEMENT AND RESPONSIVE TO A PREDETERMINED DEGREE OF OUTWARD DEFLECTION THEREOF SO AS TO IMPART AN INWARD FORCE TO THE ELEMENT WHEREBY THE ELEMENT RESTORES THE OBJECT BACK ON TO ITS NORMAL PATH. 